Medical waste material, which often contains blood., urine, other body fluids, water, saline solution, iodine or other cleansing materials, are frequently collected in a suction canister system. These systems are well known to those skilled in the art. By way of illustration, one such system is sold by Abbott Laboratories of Abbott Park, Ill.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has promulgated regulations relating to the occupational exposure to blood-borne pathogens; see, e.g., 29 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 1910.1030. These regulations mandate that all blood and body fluids must be considered as being contaminated and, consequently, must be treated in a manner sufficient to contain and disinfect any possible, spill, leaking, misting, or spattering.
Thus, there is a need for a fast and efficient means of treating, disinfecting, and insuring the safe handling of liquid medical waste collected within the suction canisters.
Safetec of America Inc., of 1333 Strad Avenue, North Tonawanda, N. Y., disclosed a process for encapsulating liquid medical waste within a suction canister in their Spring, 1993 catalog; at the last page of this catalog, it is disclosed that one may pour "Red Z" encapsulating powder into the suction canister to form a gelatinous mass which may be readily and safely be disposed of. Once the liquid medical waste has been converted to a gelatinous form, both the suction canister and the gel-like material in it may be disposed of by, e.g., burying it in a sanitary landfill, or incineration. The conversion of the liquid waste into a less fluid gel form renders it safer to handle.
In the prior art waste disposal system, the "Red Z" powder is often dispensed from a plastic film packet one of whose ends may be opened prior to the dispensing. During such dispensing, it is often difficult to estimate precisely how much absorbent powder should be poured into the suction canister; after such dispensing, in addition to having to dispose of the suction canister assembly, one also must dispose of a plastic film packet which, often, still contains some absorbent material.
Furthermore, the prior art systems frequently take a relatively long period of time before the entire mass of waste liquid is converted to a gelatinous mass.
It is an object of this invention to provide a device which will convert a specified amount of liquid waste into a gelatinous mass and, after such conversion, will be totally consumed.
It is another object of this invention to provide a degradable capsule containing both an absorbent and a biocidal material.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a degradable capsule containing an absorbent material whose ends will degrade prior to the main portion of its body.
It is another object of this invention to provide a degradable capsule which will immobilize a specified amount of liquid waste in a substantially shorter period of time than comparable prior art devices.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a degradable capsule which, after contact with the liquid medical waste, will first sanitize such liquid waste prior to the time it substantially immobilizes it.
It is another object of this invention to provide a time-release degradable capsule.
It is another object of this invention to provide a novel composition especially suited to be used within such degradable capsule.
It is another object of this invention to provide a process for preparing such novel composition.